25 Things

Thank you all for the warm wishes and love yesterday.  My heart was full and beaming.

It was with great joy that I said adieu to my 25th year and welcomed a new one.  But with all respect to the year of the quarter-life crisis, here are 25 things I learned and a few things I’m proud of…

25 things I learned at 25:

1. You can have too much Champagne.
2. Surround yourself with people who inspire you.
3. Forgiveness = happiness.
4. Choose your words and friends carefully.
5. It’s okay to eat steak and potatoes every night for a week.
6. Your family loves you and will be there for you no matter what.
7. Your best friendships do not have to be traditional.
8. Do not worry about what people think of you.  You’re usually wrong, and the worrying makes you come across as defensive and less likeable anyways.
9. Sometimes you have to choose what’s right for you over something that will bring you fleeting financial comfort (life>work).
10. Love always wins.
11. It’s okay to let go of all of your rules.
12. Diets are bullshit.
13. Travel keeps your mind and heart open.
14. Flannel pyjamas are great.
15. Poaching eggs in the microwave is just not the same.
16. A well marbled steak can outdo a filet mignon at times.
17. Positive thinking can improve your health more than any supplement.
18. Fitness assessments at gyms are often built to lower your confidence and make you buy a membership.  Be kind to yourself.
19. If you love yourself, you will never be alone or unloved.
20. Trust your gut.
21. Sometimes you have to put yourself out for others, and sometimes you have to stay true to yourself.
22. European dairy is so much better than North American dairy.
23. Being married doesn’t change much, but it’s fun to say “husband” and “wife”.
24. For a change to take place within yourself you have to truly want it.
25. Life is full of challenges but rewards you with opportunity.

Things I’m proud of accomplishing in my 25th year:

Launching this website, managing to fly to France and Berlin twice, taking a weekend to myself in Montreal to write and walk, getting a golden ticket on Recipe to Riches, marrying my best friend in a fashion that was true to the two of us, running 5k and beating my personal records, working on three great documentaries, becoming a writer for Foodnetwork.ca, living life to the fullest.